I’m a veteran Chicago-based consumer automotive journalist devoted to providing news, views, timely tips and reviews to help maximize your automotive investments. In addition to posting on Forbes.com, I'm a Contributing Editor for Consumers Digest magazine and write frequently on automotive topics for other national and regional publications and websites. My work also appears in newspapers across the U.S., syndicated by CTW Features. I'm the author of the Automotive Intelligentsia Money-Saving New-Car Guide and the Automotive Intelligentsia series of Sports Car Guides, available via Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble online and at the Apple iBook store. Email me at carguyjim@att.net.

The Best 'Green' Cars For The Money

One of the more opportune aspects of buying a “greener” car – that is, one that emits fewer smog-related and greenhouse gas emissions – is that they’re usually among the most fuel-efficient rides on the road. And with gas prices busting the family budget these days, even car shoppers who may be dispassionate regarding Mother Nature will find it easy to be altruistic when it comes to choosing a higher-mileage vehicle.

Unfortunately, many of the greenest models – typically gas/electric hybrids or pure-electric cars – exact a cost penalty of several thousand dollars that can be difficult to recover in fuel savings. A recent study by the research company Vincentric determined that, of 27 hybrid vehicles evaluated, only three current models have a total cost of ownership over a five-year period that’s predicted to be lower than their all-gasoline counterparts.

Sitting atop the “Greenest Vehicles” list determined by the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) this year is the subcompact electric Mitsubishi i-MiEV, which starts at just over $29,000. Even factoring in the one-time $7,500 tax credit currently being given to electric car buyers, that’s a considerably higher price of entry over a standard fuel-efficient small car like the Hyundai Accent at $12,545 or the Ford Fiesta at $13,200 that can get as much as 40 mpg on the highway. And that’s still not counting the added cost to install a dedicated charging station and/or upgrade a garage’s electric service (if necessary) to accommodate an electric car in the first place.

Even those shopping more for environmental than economic reasons needn’t go broke buying a zero-emissions model to make a difference. According to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data, trading in a vehicle for one that gets just 10 more mpg will save 5.5 barrels of oil and emit 2.4 fewer tons of greenhouses gases annually.

“Beyond a certain fuel price point, the higher the fuel prices the lower the benefits of alternative fuel vehicles,” says Juan Flores, director of vehicle valuation for Kelley Blue Book. “At some point diminishing returns set in regarding the premium charged/paid for an alternative fuel vehicle, especially when several manufacturers are producing vehicles with 36-40 mpg at significantly lower prices than alternative fuel vehicles.

To help both environmentally active motorists and those who just want to save a few bucks at the pump get the most bang for the buck, we cross-rated the ACEEE’s “Green Scores” for the top-performing vehicles across multiple classes against their base MSRPs (manufacturer’s suggested retail prices) to determine which cars afford the greatest environmental benefits – and, for the most part, highest fuel economy – for the money.

With money as no object, the ACEEE’s top choices included a number of models that didn’t make the cut for our Best Green Cars for the Money list because of their loftier MSRPs, including the electric Mitsubishi i-Miev and Nissan Leaf, the Honda Civic Natural Gas, and the Honda Civic and CR-Z, Lexus CT 200h and Toyota Prius and Camry hybrids.

“It’s increasingly obvious that automakers are fully invested in providing consumers with the widest possible array of vehicle choices,” says ACEEE lead vehicle analyst Shruti Vaidyanathan. “Earning a spot on the ‘Greenest’ list is proving to be a real challenge for automakers given the variety of vehicle technologies on the market and the proliferation of highly efficient conventional vehicles.”

For those keeping score, the “meanest” 2012 vehicles that can be expected to be the most deleterious to the environment, according to the ACEEE, include the Bugatti Veyron, Maybach 57, Mercedes-Benz G500 and Bentley Mulsanne luxury vehicles as well as the Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator full-size SUVs, the Ford F-150 Raptor sport pickup and assorted heavy-duty full-size vans and trucks.

The ACEEE rates cars and trucks according to a combined “Green Score” that primarily takes into account a vehicle’s fuel economy and its tailpipe emissions. The latter include health-damaging and smog-forming airborne pollutants like hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxide, particulate matter, carbon monoxide and formaldehyde, as well as greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change, like carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, methane and other compounds. The Green Scores also consider such factors as emissions estimates for a vehicle’s manufacturing process, disposal impact and (where applicable) natural gas extraction practices and upcoming shifts in the generation mix for the electricity used to power electric cars. A detailed description of the ACEEE’s methodology can be found via this link.

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